Paul Bennett
Paul Bennett was a Character on DEXTER. He is the second ex-husband of Rita Brandon as well as the father of Astor and Cody Bennett. Paul was a drug-user, addicted to heroin and owed money to dealers such as Ricky. Unfortunately, he became a manipulative rapist and abuser to his ex-wife, often harming Rita to express his violent temper. Regardless of this behavior, he did have some love for his children (though was not above using them to get to Rita) though Cody was too young to realize what a monster he was, Astor however knew all to well. He acted as a Secondary Antagonist for Season One, disliking his ex-wife's current boyfriend as he felt Rita belonged to him. Unfortunately, this boyfriend happened to be Dexter Morgan, who unknown to Paul or Rita was a rather successful Serial Killer. His continuing pestering of Rita and the kids led to Dexter taking matters into his own hands, though not killing Paul he did arrange for him to get sent back to prison where he ultimately met his end by another prisoner. Appearance Paul was a Caucasian male in his 30's. He had dirty-blonde messy mid-length hair which he cut shorter while in prison. Early Life Paul Bennett was born to Bill Bennett and his wife Maura, likely in Orlando, FL where they currently live. Much of his early life prior to meeting Rita Brandon is unknown though it's likely he was also involved with drugs during that period. It is known that she is from Michigan, so it's likely he was up there at the time. The two of them married, baring two children from the relationship - Astor and Cody. At some point Paul met a dealer named Ricky, whom he later owed a great deal of money to and likely had other dealers after him. He became addicted to crack and became very abusive towards his family, with Cody being too young at the time to remember but his older child Astor knowing all too well. At some point, the family moved to Miami, FL where they settled into a house and a new life. Unfortunately, Paul remained an abuser - one night in particular became so horrible that he repeatedly beat and raped his wife. It was his daughter Astor who made a call to the police. Officer Debra Morgan was one of the first to respond on scene to the domestic violence report. Paul was promptly arrested and imprisoned, while Debra developed a friendship with Rita. Ultimately, she introduced Rita to her future boyfriend Dexter Morgan, Deb's brother and the two would eventually be married and have a child together, named Harrison Morgan, but Dexter's extra-curricular activities as a serial killer (which she was totally unaware of), would cost Rita her life. Plot 'Season One' Over 6 months passed since Paul was put in jail, where Rita had now moved into a relationship with Dexter Morgan. One day the two of them and the kids were outside working on the gardening, when an old dealer of Paul's named Ricky arrived on their doorstep looking for "his money". After being rude and obnoxious to Rita, he decided that he'd just take her car as payment and in her dedication to put Paul and her past life behind her, she gave up the key (after throwing it at Ricky) whom took the car and vanished. She refused to file a report, wanting to move on with her life. Some time passes and Astor's birthday party is approaching, Paul calls his wife to tell her that he's been released (for what he explains as "overcrowding"). Rita's attitude goes from her joyful bliss to an upset expression, something Astor takes note of knowing she only gets like that when talking to their dad. Paul tells Rita that he wants to come to Astor's party and Rita initially tells him she'll think about it but after Cody finds out that his "dad's coming home" (he's unaware of what type of man he is) and blabs about it at school, several parents decide to keep their children from coming to Astor's party. As Astor becomes increasingly depressed about kids not wanting to come, Rita calls Paul up and tells him not to come anywhere near the party, afterwards assuring parents that Paul won't be there the children are again allowed by their parents to attend the party. The following info is subject for deletion as new info is added in. At an unknown time prior to season 1, Debra Morgan, while still in the Vice department, was called to a domestic violence report at the Bennett's house. It transpired that Paul beat and raped Rita repeatedly before Astor finally called the police. Paul was arrested and imprisoned. Bennett is eventually released due to 'good behavior,' and begins subtly harassing his estranged wife and children. He attempted to get to Rita through their children, gradually winning them. Eventually Rita stood up for herself and forced Paul to sign divorce papers but this didn't stop him after he later attempted to rape her. He then attempted to attain full custody of his children to punish her for leaving him. Bennett displayed great animosity towards Dexter, for obvious reasons. After a particularly charged conversation, in which Paul refers to Rita as 'that skinny bitch,' Dexter snaps and hits Paul around the head with a frying pan. He then drags Paul to his car, moves it, drives Paul to his bedsit, shoots him up with heroin and calls the police. He is quickly arrested and imprisoned once more, though this time in a federal prison where he is assaulted constantly. Despite Paul's pleas, Rita doesn't help him verify his story by looking for his 'missing shoe,' which he suspects - correctly - was knocked off his foot during Dexter's frame-job. Shortly thereafter, Paul is killed in a fight in the prison. Rita feels some guilt for not heeding his warnings and concerns for his safety, but feels a sense of peace knowing that he is gone. Cody and Astor take his death more seriously, though their love for Dexter softens the blow of losing their father. es:Paul Bennett Category:Deceased Category:Characters Category:Season 1 characters Category:Season 2 characters Category:Characters with Unseen Deaths Category:Recurring characters Category:Secondary antagonists Category:Victims of Other killers Category:Rapists